New York Knicks Win NBA Cup, Jalen Brunson Named MVP

The New York Knicks defeated the San Antonio Spurs, 124-113, to win the 2025 Emirates NBA Cup championship on Tuesday at T-Mobile Arena on the Las Vegas Strip.

The Knicks' win was powered by 6-foot-2 guard Jalen Brunson's 25 points and team-leading eight assists. Brunson was named the 2025 NBA Cup Most Valuable Player. 

After the game, Brunson, praising individual teammates, told Prime Video broadcaster Taylor Rooks the Knicks' motto is "We're going to find a way." In regular-season play, the Knicks are second in the Eastern Conference behind the Detroit Pistons. So far this season, Brunson is seventh in the league in scoring, averaging 28.8 points a game. 

Other New York standouts in the NBA Cup championship game included 6-foot-7 forward OG Anunoby, who scored 28 points, and bench players Mitchell Robinson, whose 15 rebounds included 10 offensive boards, and 6-foot-2 guard Tyler Kolek, who added 14 points and five assists while committing only one turnover in 20 minutes of play.

The Spurs, representing the Western Conference in the NBA Cup championship game, were led on Tuesday by the last two winners of the NBA Rookie of the Year award, 6-foot-6 guard Stephon Castle (15 points, 12 assists) and 7-foot-4 center Victor Wembanyama (18 points). Castle was the 2025 Rookie of the Year, while Wembanyama won it in 2024.

NBA Cup Winners

The NBA Cup is an in-season league tournament now in its third year. Players on the NBA Cup championship team earn more than $530,000 each, while the players on the runner-up team collect about $212,000 each.

Below are the NBA Cup winners:

• 2023-24 season, Los Angeles Lakers, LeBron James tournament MVP
• 2024-25 season, Milwaukee Bucks, Giannis Antetokounmpo tournament MVP
• 2025-26 season, New York Knicks, Jalen Brunson tournament MVP

The NBA regular-season playoffs conclude in June 2026, when the league champion will be crowned. The Oklahoma City Thunder are seeking to become the first back-to-back NBA champions since the Golden State Warriors in 2017 and 2018.